• I have no talent.
• My hands are too small.
• I tried teaching myself, that was a bust.
• I have no rhythm. 

Let me address excuse number 2 first. The doctor’s assistant told me today that her hands were too small. “See she said” as she extended her hand. (It was the same size as mine.) “How do you play with those hands?” “Easy, a teacher showed me.”

Number 3 is the saddest. “I tried teaching myself “. Trying to teach yourself from YouTube or a half-baked app is like trying to teach yourself to drive a car from YouTube. Let that sink in for a moment. A teacher will make you a plan, sequence the material for you, respond to your concerns, and inspire you.

Number 1 and 4? " I have no talent, I have no rhythm." I take ballroom dance classes with my wife. She is a natural and trained dancer. I’ve no talent or rhythm. But, I’m having fun every week. Nobody cares, not even my wife/dance partner. We are having way too much fun together to worry about my lack rhythm or talent.

If I can help your overcome the resistance, call me.

David Story

Keeping your positive attitude on your ability to learn the piano

• Good attitudes are maintained through focused effort and disciplined study in alignment with your goals and values.
• Good attitude is easier to maintain if you are sharing this journey with other people. Now that concerts are returning, consider meeting other adult piano students at professional piano recitals. Strike up a conversation with the person sitting beside you. Chances are good that only pianists and former pianists attend piano recitals and they'd be happy to chat about it.

David

I practice piano and drums daily, except Sundays when I rest. This summer I'm practicing bass. My student Barb asked me, "how do you practice?" This is what I said. 

1. I prepare to practice. My music and instruments are at hand and ready to go. As is my metronome, recordings, recorder, and pencils.
2. I listen to the reference recording before commencing if the piece is new.
3. I plan out how I will play the piece. I consider fingering, dynamics, articulations, and the appropriate motions required to realise this vision.
4. I warm up and stretch.
5. I use a metronome most of the time. All the time if I’m on the drum kit.
6. I record myself section by section. And, then listen back and adjust as required before moving on.
7. I practice piano technique and drum rudiments.
8. I listen attentively to music. No distractions. I ask myself, “what’s going on here?” I often write out what I hear. To date of transcribed 100+ drum pieces alone. And, countless piano excerpts. 
9. I practice slowly with the all the dynamics and articulations in order. I don’t add this later.
10. I’m patient. That being said, if you follow the 9 steps above, you may not need to test your patience. 

Have Fun. 
​
David Story

With the teaching schedule reduced over the summer, it is time to catch up. 

1. The “Breakfast piano minutes” video series has been a revelation. I’ve really enjoyed creating these short 1-minute videos for social media. Over the summer, with more non-teaching time available I plan to tackle more challenging repertoire. And learn to create multi-screen videos.
2. Practice the drums like crazy. I will soon be able to play in bands again. Here are some of the areas of focus:
   1. Snare drum studies and solos.
   2. Mastering and applying the material from the last 15 months of lockdown drum lessons.
   3. Learning new repertoire.
3. Update my music playlists.

​David

A rudimental etude I've been teaching drum students this year. 

Errors give feedback. As adults we understand errors present themselves in many ways. Sometimes they are hidden in disguise. 

The most effective way of dealing with errors of execution on the piano bench is to step back and listen again to your practice recording, Make note in the score of the problem areas, and then consider the following. 

1. Is it a fingering problem? If so change it.
2. is it a conceptual problem? Then consider spending more time listening to music of the same stylistic period. Study it, mark up the scores, try out ideas. Musicians understand that "we are who we listen to". 
3. Is it a technical problem? Have you mapped out the necessary movement or chorography in the score? If this step or concept is unfamiliar to you call me, I can help. 

​The picture above is from The Musician's Way, a book I highly recommend. 
​
Best, 

David